Stiles sat perched on the edge of the large smooth rock. In his mind it was his rock. When he was younger his family used to come out to spend a weekend out by the lake. They would always set up tent next to the rock. There were so many memories of him and his mother laying on the same rock, staring into the sky. The best part was that you could see the lake, but no one on the lake could see you due to the trees it was tucked behind. He used to watch the people boating, fishing, and swimming with his mom. They'd make up stories about them while his dad cooked dinner. A tear rolled down his cheek. This is also where she died. It was early spring, and the wind bit at his skin. Stiles tucked his feet up and buried his head in his lap. His body relaxed, as he let out all the frustrations that he had buried deep inside of him. His body shook as he sobbed loudly, not hearing the man approaching him. He only noticed when a heavy boot nudged his leg. Stiles looked up to find the concerned eyes of Derek Hale looking down on him. Stiles hid his face quickly, his cheeks burning from embarrassment.

"What are you doing here?" Stiles asked, but Derek didn't respond, just kept staring down at him.

"Just leave me alone." Stiles pleaded, to which Derek let out a dramatic huff. He shifted awkwardly, before taking a seat next to the younger boy. Stiles' body froze as Derek wrapped an arm around him, pulling Stiles head to rest on his chest. Stiles melted into the warm embrace.

"Why?" He began to question, but Derek just raised his hand to stop him.

"You are part of my pack." He replied, "And I take care of my pack." Stiles nodded, continuing to cry into Derek's shirt, feeling the warmth and comfort, allowing it to soak into his body. Stiles tears started to slow down and he leaned away from the werewolf. Derek let out a deep sigh, before looking Stiles in the eyes. "Besides, I kind of figured I was the reason your life has become so hectic." Stiles furrowed his brows in confusion so Derek explained. "Well werewolves in general, not just me. I mean you have to lie to your father, lie to your friends, and lie to yourself. I know how it feels, and it's not easy."

"When did you become the comforting type?" Stiles pointed out, his voice still shaky.

"Stiles, there is a lot about wolf pack dynamics that you don't understand." He answered vaguely.

"Like what?" Stiles asked, "And I don't want a lame excuse of crappy answer. I want the truth. I think I have been through enough. If I'm part of this pack, then I should know what the pack knows."

"Fine." Derek grumbled, "Mates. You don't know about mates."

"Mates? So you do have mates? Do you mate for life? Do you have predetermined mates or can you choose your own? Does your mate have to be a werewolf? If so, can it be from a different pack?" Stiles began his line of questioning.

"If you would shut up I would explain." Derek snapped, and Stiles closed his mouth. "Thank you." The older werewolf sighed, "We pick our mates, or our instincts do. The closer a werewolf gets with a person, the more tuned our instincts become towards that person. That's how we can tell who would be a good candidate for a mate. And we don't all mate for life, but a majority of us do." He finished explaining, his eyes carefully judging the boy next to him.

"Ah, I've been wondering about that ever since Scott started dating Allison."

"Yes, well now you know." Derek cleared his throat. He removed his arm and shifted away from Stiles.

"So what does mating have to do with me?" Derek let out a nervous cough.

"What do you mean?" he asked instead of answering.

"Why did I have to know about mating?" he reiterated.

"You...ah...you didn't need to know. But it was one of the things that you didn't know." He stood up and began pacing.

"But Der" Stiles was cut off by the sudden force of Derek grabbing the boy's face between his hands. The werewolf silenced any other questions by pressing his lips onto Stiles'. Stiles didn't hesitate. He had wanted this for too long to lose the opportunity at hand. He stood up, wrapping his arms around Derek's neck and kissed back. Derek smirked, growling approval as he slipped his tongue into Stiles' mouth. He moved his hands onto the boys waist, slipping the past his hips and onto his butt. He pulled the Stiles closer so there was no space in between them. Stiles moaned, before breaking away for air.

"You're mine." Derek panted. Stiles heart skipped a beat. "You're my mate."

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